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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. cell — in biology
  3. spring — the season
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. spring — of water
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. pop — to visit
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — help
  11. lie — to recline
  12. mate — to breed
  13. face — to point toward
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. mate — a friend
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. face — part of the head
  19. pop — soda
  20. face — to confront
  21. mate — a partner
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — a phone
  24. spring — a coil

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com